Lacking energy

[blackjack]

I am hoping some of you might be able to help me.

Thor has always been very lazy with his work, and sometimes he comes in from the field quite tired too. On days that he is in, he loves nothing more than to stretch out on his bed and snooze the day away (wouldnt we all like to be able to do that!) and once he gets up he is full of it. He has done this since he was a baby the lazy monster. He is 8 this year and we really want to start progressing his ridden work more but need to address his energy levels first. He is currently fed half a scoop of Saracens fibre pencils and half a scoop of Alfa A twice a day which seems to maintain his weight quite nicely but I do feel he needs something to up his energy levels a bit.

I have wondered about feeding him oil, but if so how much, what kind of oil and does it work?? Or can anyone suggest anything else?

I dont want to make him silly and over excitable and I know that whatever we do to up his energy is also going to mean that he will also use that extra energy for making even more mischief than usual but I really do need to do something to perk him up a bit.

I dont think there is anything wrong with him, as he is in lovely condition, has a very shiny coat (when he is not covered in mud LOL) and is full of beans on days that he has been in his stable for the day and has plenty of sleep. I think I just need to sort his feeding.

Over to you, oh splendid folk of Dalesfans, for any ideas!!

[SuzieP]

I'm not an expert on feeding so I'll leave others who are to help out there.

But I do wonder if Thor is just unfit? The danger of adding extra feed is that he might gain weight if he's not burning off the calories through extra exercise. Maybe if you start a fittening programme with him he'll brighten up. Bea gets lazy when he's bored and so doing different things is good for him - like riding out with friends or going show jumping, anything that presents him with some interesting challenges.

[harveydales]

I think that whatever you do with or feed a pony you are never going to alter his basic temperment and, personally, I think the Thor and Harvey types are the best.

Harvey can appear to be very lazy and lacking energy at times but I've found that the fitter he gets, the more energy he has. He will be 17 this year and the last 2 years I've had him in very hard work - he's been the fittest he's ever been in his whole life, the most energetic and the happiest. Our Dales Ponies thrive on hard work and, as Sue says, lots of mental stimulation and variety helps. Harvey loves working out puzzles whether it be in his dressage or SJ or even out hacking.

As to feeding, I've tried all sorts but I now stick with Winergy Senior which gives him all he needs and he does very well on it. I had tried adding oats etc but the only thing that really got him energetic was fittening, variety of work and mental stimulation.

[harry11]

i am not ace on feed but i only feed happy hoof and balancer with little linseed oil in harrys diet and not even that in summer - that is the plan. He can be lazy and if i am not firm will fall asleep. but the fitter he gets the better he is becoming. So try the riding riding riding fun thing. yipee!

[harry11]

what is this scoring? how can you tell what a pony is?

[Deleted]

I have the opposite problem! Jet is calm all winter and then as soon as the grass grows it's wheeee time!!